


A Secret Life

by thestanceyg



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Not Canon Compliant, Prompt Fic, Secret Marriage, because i can't do that, but not a lot of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-06
Updated: 2017-04-06
Packaged: 2018-10-15 20:11:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10557000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thestanceyg/pseuds/thestanceyg
Summary: Prompt: Darcy is contacted by a magazine about her super popular lifestyle blog (fantastic house, fantastic hubby/wife, labradoodle and great child), only problem, it’s totally fake. SO she needs all of these ASAP. Cue fake relationship trope goodness on steroids.*note:  I am doing this differently.  Instead of a fake relationship I’m going with a secret one, and it has a lot more angst than I originally thought it would.  Sorry.**Extra PS. I am so sorry to usedkarma, who clearly did not ask for this with her prompt but is still being gifted this work anyway for inspiring me.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [usedkarma](https://archiveofourown.org/users/usedkarma/gifts).



> I've had some really strange writer's block, so enjoy this bunny that escaped.

 

_ Today I’m making lemon lava cake, a fun summery twist on a chocolate classic.  I know, I know – don’t mess with something that isn’t broken.  But I promise you’re going to love this citrusy update!  It’s been a favorite of the husband’s since I tried it out on one of those rare dates we had while doing the long distance thing.  He said it reminds him of me: sweet and sassy.  So grab yourself some eggs and sugar, because we’re cooking up some memories today! _

 

Darcy hit save and closed her laptop as she wandered over to where Jane was getting ready to run some tests. Jane had no idea that her blog paid just as well as working in the lab, but that had more to do with the fact that Jane didn’t know the blog existed.  Sure, working in Stark Tower was amazing (and paid well), but you wouldn’t believe the bank a lifestyle blog could make, especially when you had a side store for DIY kits to create some of your home wares. Jane’s research had been picking up in the last month, so her blog life had been bleeding a little bit into her work life, which she normally wouldn’t allow. (Too much chance to get messy.)

She had started the blog two years ago when they had moved back to the US after the ordeal in London. They had finally found a semi-permanent home in New York, and she was eager to make her cozy little apartment hers, but more importantly, a home.  She had always been pretty crafty (and thrifty), so documenting her life had been a natural progression.  She had documented her place, always emphasizing that it was a work in progress, and never shying away from what she had started with.  People had really resonated with the time it took her to make changes.  Living on a budget was something most of her readers dealt with, and seeing her work with just pocket change and some know-how made others think they could do what they did, if they didn’t mind the time it would take to get there.

Darcy turned her attention back to Jane and set up the laptops to record the data.  Once everything was set, the test would run for five hours, and then they would have weeks of sorting through data.  Jane would try to push her to stay late, but Darcy was always very protective of her time when her husband was around.  Luckily for Jane, he wasn’t home right now, and she didn’t expect him to be for several days.  Of course, Jane would be a lot more understanding if she knew about her husband, but that wasn’t really a secret Darcy could share.

 

_ Let’s talk walls.  If you’re like me, painting them isn’t an option, and neither is putting much more than a tiny nail hole in them. But blank walls are like a giant sign that says, “I don’t own this!” or “This is an apartment, not a home!” Ugh.  Blank walls, I hate you. So, here’s a simple project to display your pictures (and totally spend the money to print some pictures, even if it’s just printing them from a word document at a copy shop). Pictures will not only make your place feel like it’s actually yours, but this project will be easy to change up and remove when you’re heading off to a new place.  Win-win, right?  Here’s what you need… _

 

They had met in the dusty desert of New Mexico when Thor had stormed into their lives. He came and stole everything they had, and somehow she couldn’t bring herself to hate him like she should have.  Oh, she was angry enough to spit nails, but she couldn’t rouse up the hate. Maybe it was because he had this look that made her think he was just doing his job; that even high level government agents are still just a grunt to someone above them. Several days later he had taken her to a small tent to debrief about what had happened with the Destroyer.  He had handed back her iPod, and she had enjoyed the brief brush of his calloused fingers against hers.  Alone on the roof that night, she listened to the playlist he had made her while she looked at the contact information he had also added. It was then and there she decided to do something that would either be brilliant or stupid.  She took a selfie of the night sky filled with stars around her, no flash so she was mostly just an outline in the dark, though a small smile just barely visible from the street light below. Her finger only hesitated a second before she pulled up an email, attached the photo, and hit send.

 

_ Sudden cold snaps are The Worst. They never fail to leave me with a sore throat that feels like sandpaper. Luckily, I have a simple, tasty solution for when you need some pain relief on a budget.  Water, honey, and some citrus is all you need to make his sore throat soother.  You’ll also win major points with friends if you make this for them when their voice starts to sound scratchy. _

 

Phil had died. She had been in Norway with Jane, watching the devastation occurring in New York, and her chest was tight.  She knew it had happened before they had been told by the junior agent guarding them. (She knew in her heart, but still broke into the Shield database to confirm the pale man’s words.)

When they were back in the States, she had asked Jane for a week off because she didn’t know what to do with herself.  She and Phil hadn’t been anything formal.  They had flirted over emails and texts, gone to dinner whenever he managed to be somewhere she was, and they had enjoyed nights (whenever possible) in dingy hotel rooms that she barely noticed because all she had eyes for was him. She was in love with him, had never actually told him, and now he was dead.

When the man pulled her into the alley and stabbed her with a needle, she didn’t even protest. She was too tired to fight.  It was the first day of her time off from Jane.  No one would miss her.  She’d probably be dead long before anyone realized she should have been missed.

She came to, though, on a couch in an office.  No restraints.  She groaned as she sat up.

“That was faster than I thought it would be,” a gruff voice said from across the room.  She opened her eyes and looked at the man.

“Who are you?”

“Director Fury.”

Darcy knew that name.  This was Phil’s boss. “Oh.”  She looked around the room a bit more. “I suppose I’m not going to be tortured and killed then.”

“Not today Lewis.”  They stared at each other for a minute before he added, “I really expected more talking from you, given what Phil had told me.”

“He talked to you about me?”

Fury smirked at her. “He had to after I intercepted one of your emails. I thought he had maybe been compromised.  I was right.”

“I don’t work for some agency,” she said in a hurry.  “Really.”

“That’s not the kind of compromised I meant,” he said surprisingly gently.

“Oh.”

He stood up and walked from behind his desk to the door, opening it.  “You’d better follow me.”

She only hesitated for a moment before doing so.  There weren’t a lot of people on their floor, and she realized that she must be somewhere fairly secure.  High level clearance.  He led her to an elevator, and then through a maze of halls before stopping at a large metal door with a security pad.  “Miss Lewis, apparently you’re able to keep your mouth shut, so I’m about to show you something. I want to make this very clear.  I am doing this for Coulson.  If at any time I feel like you aren’t doing things in his best interests, then I  _ will _ use my resources to shut you up.  Are we clear?”

“Yes,” she said, curious about what was locked behind the door. One fingerprint and retina scan later, they were in a new maze of hallways.  This trip was much shorter.  Fury simply opened a door and motioned her inside, pulling it closed behind her and leaving her alone in a room.  This room had an observation window into a connecting room, and in that connecting room was a bed with Phil, and his eyes were open.  Her breath caught for just a moment before she practically ran through the last door separating them.

The door opening drew his attention, and his eyes grew wide at the sight of her.  She flung her arms around his neck, sobbing.  “I don’t want to ever have to go through that again.”

He was holding her just as tightly.”I’m sorry to hear that.  If you’re going to be with me, you have to get used to the fact that I might get hurt.”

“I meant I never want to not know again,” she clarified, pulling back a little to rest her forehead against his as her tears slowed.

“There’s a way we can fix that, you know.”

“Anything.”

“Marry me,” he whispered, pulling back to look her in the eyes.

“Yes,” she said, surging forward to kiss him.

 

_ Dear Miss Darcy, _

_ My name is Helen and I’m the feature editor at  _ Martha Stewart Living _. We are interested in running a feature on you and your home in our July issue.  We’d also like to extend an invitation to write a feature for us in the same issue as sort of a trial run for something more long term.  Your ingenuity and style are exactly what we’re looking for and hope you will take us up on this offer. Feel free to reply to me directly with any questions and your answer.  We look forward to hearing from you. _

 

Darcy slammed her laptop shut.  “Darcy?” Jane said, peering up from behind a machine.  “Everything okay?”

She and Phil had been married a week after he proposed by a smug Fury who had gotten ordained online for that express purpose.  Darcy had told Jane that she wanted to finish up her last semester and then would rejoin her as a graduate, something Jane had been very supportive of. What Jane didn’t know was that Darcy was finishing her degree online and that the rest of her time would be spent helping her husband recover.

His recovery was a matter of great secrecy; something Darcy only tolerated because it meant she had access to him. (And maybe a little because she was scared of the Director.)

“Err, yes,” she said looking up at Jane, hoping to have fooled the woman.  Jane narrowed her eyes.  Apparently she hadn’t been successful.

“That’s not the truth.”

“Fine.  It’s nothing.  It’s just something I need to figure out later.”

Phil was still technically dead.  The Avengers didn’t know about him or his team.  They didn’t know his wife worked in their tower, and went home to a small apartment that they shared whenever he was able. And now, apparently, her chance at a big break would have to be turned down because she couldn’t divulge that secret and she wasn’t sure how to say yes to this without something breaking.

“It’s not nothing if it’s making you make that face,” Jane said gently.  Keeping everything from Jane had been hard, but necessary. Jane came out from behind the machine, wiping her hands on her pants.  “Let’s get lunch.”

Darcy was going to protest, but didn’t.  She was so tired of secrets. Surely she could talk about the blog without giving up Phil as well. It would feel good to tell Jane one of her secrets; free up room for new secrets that she was sure she would sooner or later be asked to keep.

“What about,” she said, eyes darting toward the machine Jane had been working on.

“It’s fine,” Jane said dismissively.  “I need to walk away for a bit anyway.  I’m too close to the problem to fix it. I’ll come at it with fresh eyes after lunch.”

Darcy looked at her for a moment longer than she should have, making it awkward, and then grabbed her bag. “Where do you want to go?”

“How do you feel about that bistro a few blocks over?”

“I feel hungry.  Let’s do it.”

Jane, bless her, didn’t press as they walked to the restaurant. Instead she talked about her upcoming lecture series and gently tried to bully Darcy into joining her.

“I can’t,” she said of the third time as they sat down and looked over the menu.

“Is it because of your email?”

Darcy rolled her tongue over her teeth. “Kind of,” she settled on.  Tangentially.  Mostly she didn’t want to go because Phil thought he would be home sometime during that week and she didn’t want to miss him.

“Are we going to talk about it?”

“It’s kind of stupid,” she sighed, putting down her menu.

Jane gave her an unimpressed look. “It’s not stupid if it’s bothering you. Stop stalling and either spill or tell me to fuck off.”

This.  This is why she stuck with Jane. She felt everything give.  Sure she had already decided she was going to tell Jane, but all her second thoughts were swept away in the flood of friendship. She looked up and saw their waiter approaching.  A few more minutes then before she let Jane in on one of her secrets.

 

_ Cleaning is one of my least favorite things, but I’m also so much happier when my place is clean.  So, of course I’ve found some hacks for keeping things cleaner longer, and making me feel good about what I’ve done.  So let’s start off with one of my least favorite things to clean: baseboards. Did you know this doesn’t have to be an insufferable task?  I didn’t until I learned about using dryer sheets to clean them.  And I can see your incredulous glances from here.  Yes, it really does work! _

 

Jane had been sitting at her computer for the last hour reading Darcy’s blog.  After the first ten minutes, Darcy had given up waiting and started working on her next post. A stretch and sigh later, it was apparently time to talk.

“You’re really talented,” Jane said, ending the silence. “I can see why Martha Stewart is interested.” Darcy ducked her head a little and waited for the “but.” “I don’t know why you thought this was something that you had to hide, or why you worried about how I would react when I found out.  Lots of people blog, Darce, and not all of them are as good as you.”

“Thanks,” she said, unsure how to take Jane’s carefree attitude.

“I mean, you must have a good readership if a big magazine is interested. I’m sure they did their research. Plus, you have that store and you’re way too smart to do that if you didn’t have enough people to make it profitable.” She paused, tilting her head. “Just how profitable is all this?”

“Not quite, but pretty close to what you pay me.”

Jane let out a low whistle. “Does this mean I’m going to lose you when you tell Martha yes?”

“I’ve been doing this for two years. Why would I bail now?”

Jane nodded approvingly. “Okay, so your fear isn’t telling me you’re quitting.  Is the problem the husband?” Darcy’s heart skipped a beat.”Because I think it’s easy to work around that. You obviously make it clear he travels a lot. He just won’t be available come feature time. Besides, you’ve made him sound private, so it won’t matter that they don’t get a pic of you guys together when there isn’t even one on your blog. No one will think twice, and your fake husband secret stays safe.” Darcy let out a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. “There’s nothing left to do but email back and say yes.”

“Thanks Jane,” she said with a smile. And she meant it. Jane made a good case for saying yes without it endangering her and Phil.  Maybe it really was that easy.

“You did a really good job putting together the personality of your fake husband, though. Is he based on anyone?”

She stilled for a moment. “Not really.”

“How about the truth this time? You waited too long to answer for that to be the truth.”

Her mind buzzed through possible answers. “It’s just...that’s the part that’s kind of embarrassing.”

“Really? You’re afraid to tell me who you play house with in your head?”

“Technically he’s dead.”  (Someday Jane would know the truth and then she would probably make Darcy actually dead for her word choice.)

“Some celebrity then,” Jane mused. “I’ll figure it out.”

Darcy tried to relax a bit. It seemed Jane was going to let this go and treat it like a puzzle to be solved. That, she could deal with. Jane was highly unlikely to solve this one.

_ Darcy’s apartment is small but charming, just the way she likes it.  “My husband isn’t home often, so I really get to make this place my sanctuary. He enjoys coming home to see what I’ve been working on. He says it’s a chance to get to know me again after long periods apart.” She smiles a little sadly at this. She won’t give the details, but she does tell me she hid her pictures of him because he wants to stay anonymous.  That doesn’t stop her from sharing some small items he’s gifted her, and you can hear the love in her stories. _

 

“So someone’s a big shot,” Tony says, walking into the lab. Darcy’s head shoots up and looks over at Jane.

“Jane? Did you win an award and not tell me?”

“Not her.  You.” He sits on the lab table across from her work space, legs swinging a bit. “Didn’t know you were Suzy Homemaker.”

“Oh!” she blushes. “It’s just something fun I like to do.”

Tony’s eyes are boring into her, and she’s certain he can see all her lies.”I want to throw a party to celebrate and I want you to plan it.”  She looks at him questioningly. “I’ll give you a big budget and you can get several blog posts out of it.  Show people what you’re capable of with some cash. If you do well enough, Pepper might even hire you for some of her events.”

“You do realize the whole point of my blog is a shoestring budget, right?”

He waved his hand like he was swatting away her concern. “I do, actually. But this would be a one time thing on the blog and I think it might be a fun indulgence for your readers. They already feel like they know you, so they can imagine being in your shoes and having this experience too.”

“That’s...that’s actually a good point.”

“I know,” he said with a smirk, hoping off the table. “I’ll have Jarvis send you the details.”

Darcy relaxed in her chair. He hadn’t questioned the husband thing. Maybe everyone that knew her in real life just assumed he was imaginary.  She didn’t know whether to be proud of her lying skills or mad that they thought she was so pathetic.

 

_ You guys, when I received the budget for this party I thought I had started hallucinating because there was NO WAY he meant to give me that much to plan a party celebrating my Martha Stewart feature.  It’s just insane! (especially since I could totally pull off this party with a 10th of the money and still feel like I had done something extremely extravagant.) But, real talk, there was no way I was going to pass up an opportunity to see what I could do with a lot of money instead of the money I found on the street walking home. _

 

The party was going really well. She had put together a polaroid photo booth with props, a decorate your own cupcake station, and she had an entire wall of glitter tassel that looked great in the reflection of the DJs strobe lights. She really loved these little touches she got to add. She also loved the dress that Pepper had helped her pick out one afternoon.  As she wove through the guests, checking on everything, she felt the need to pinch herself that this was real.  The only thing that would make this better was Phil.

At the thought of him the special secure phone he had given her rang. She slipped onto the balcony and answered.

“Hello handsome.”

“...There’s been an incident,” said a voice she remembered clearly.

“Why are you calling me, Director?”

“Because you need to get to Phil right now.”

“How bad is it?” she asked, legs starting to give out.

He paused for a moment before saying, “Bad.  I’ll send you coordinates. Get to the airfield and I’ll get you to him from there.”

The line went dead and Darcy realized she was on the ground.  He hand was shaking so hard she was about to drop the phone.

“Easy there kiddo,” a soft voice said next to her. If she had been in control of her body at all, she would have screamed and flailed at the sudden proximity of a man. Instead her eyes darted to the side, wide and terrified to see Clint crouched next to her. “Are you okay?” he asked, rubbing his hands down her arms.

“I’m….I’m..” she dropped the phone as she stumbled over her words.

“Shhhh,” he said when it was clear she wasn’t able to speak coherently. “Jarvis said you had come out and your physical signs had gone crazy.”

“He also said you were on the phone, on a call he couldn’t trace,” Tony said, joining them. “Is someone threatening you kid?”

The thought of being threatened suddenly snapped her mind back into gear. “I, I have to go!” she said, trying to get to her feet, though her limbs were still quivering and it wasn’t working.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Clint said, holding her steady. “Let us help you.”

“I don’t think I can let you.  I have to go.  I have to get to him!”

“Get to who, D?” Tony asked, voice calm but serious.

“My husband,” she whispered, trying to push Clint’s hands off of her.

He gripped tighter, looking at her hard. “What husband?”

“I can’t tell you.  He’ll be so mad if I tell you!” She said, suddenly getting frantic.

“Honey, that doesn’t sound like a good situation,” Tony said. “Let us help you.”

She knew that she had to look crazy, struggling against people who wanted to help her, who obviously thought she was being abused. “It’s not like that!  It’s classified!”

“Your marriage is classified?” Tony asked, truly perplexed.

“Yes!” she cried, happy he understood. “And I need to go!”

“I’m level 10 clearance,” Clint said. “I’m sure I can help.”

“No, no no,” she said shaking her head. “You can’t.  That would be bad.” Her phone pinged from the ground where she dropped it.

Tony picked it up and looked at the text.  “Why do you have coordinates to a private government airfield?”

“To take me to him,” she said, slumping. “He’s hurt, and I need to get to him.”

“I’ll take you.  Stark, you stay and make sure no one wonders about where she went,” Clint said, wrapping an arm around her waist to help her through the room.

She didn’t know how to tell him no.  She was in no state to drive, and technically the airfield wasn’t the same as giving away Phil’s name.

“Okay,” she said, defeated, and let him guide her through the party to the elevator.

 

_ Hey guys.  This is a weird post. I don’t even know how to explain, which is an odd feeling for me. I will be on hiatus until further notice. _

 

Phil stirred in the bed next to her and she set aside her laptop where she was remotely sorting data for Jane.

“Hey there,” she said softly to him.

“How bad is it that I like being injured so I can see you more?”

“As bad as me liking that you got injured and have no choice but to be here with me.” She leaned over and kissed his forehead. “Want me to make waffles?”

He pulled at her until she was leaning down again and he could kiss her properly. She slid down so she could be more comfortable as his hand cupped her jaw and his thumb ran small circles. Her hand went to his waist, wanting to pull him tighter, closer, but worried about pressing into his still tender muscles.

“Ahem,” a throat cleared, startling them apart. “Far be it from me to interfere with people getting it on, but someone turned on all the privacy protocols and I need to know about dinner.”

“Then use a phone Tony,” Darcy ground out, forehead pressed to her husband’s.

“You shouldn’t have been able to get in here,” Phil said with a frown. “Everything was locked down.”

“I’d tell you, but then you’d know how I did it,” he shrugged. “So.  Dinner?”

Darcy looked at Phil, gaging his pain level. “We’ll be there,” she said once she was satisfied with what she saw.

“Great.  See you guys in an hour.  That should be just enough time for a quick bj given how quickly zombie agent moves these days.”

“Can I tase him?” she asked Phil.

“No,” he said with a shake of his head. ”There’s too much paperwork.”

Once she heard the door shut, she stood and held out her hand to her husband. “Obviously he hasn’t figured out how efficient we are after all our time apart.  There’s definitely time for some shower sex before dinner as long as we watch the surgery site.”

Phil matched her dirty grin with a sly smile of her own. “I’m definitely feeling up to that,” he said, taking her hand and letting her pull him up. “And I’ve been working extra hard in physical therapy to be able to do that thing again.”

“Phil!” she shrieked while smacking his arm.  “You did  _ not _ tell him what you needed your arm strength for.”

“Of course not,” he said, nipping at her ear. “But I’m sure he guessed when he saw how hot my wife was.”

*** 

At the airfield Clint had taken one look at the agents that were sent to retrieve her and demanded to go with them. She was in no state to handle what was about to happen on her own he argued, and he also didn’t like that a scientist and pilot that didn’t know why they were picking her up were the only ones there. Neither argued with him, which he later told her made him decide they were okay when the shit hit the fan an hour later.

Everything had been in sharp focus, but she wasn’t interacting with it.  It was like she was watching a movie happen to her. She remembered how the scientist had introduced himself as Fitz and she remembered Phil telling her a story about him and a girl named Simmons that were like the perfect matched pair that didn’t know they were in love. “Like some idiots I know,” he had said and they had laughed about how silly they had been before Loki (something that only time and space could let them look back on with humor alongside the anger). The pilot was named Trip and she remembered how his grandfather had been a Howling Commando and how she had teased Phil that that was the reason he had picked him for the team. She remembered the crease that deepened between Clint’s brows as he learned that they didn’t know who Darcy was, just that they were to take her to a secret location and treat her well. She had wanted to open her mouth to say they were taking her to her husband, but then she remembered his team didn’t know about her, so she zipped her lips shut.

Clint stuck close to her like a bodyguard as they were led through the underground facility. Agent May had taken one look at him and said, “I will not hesitate to shoot you,” and he had seemed startled by this until she opened a door and he laid eyes on Darcy’s husband. She had moved swiftly to his side, terrified of the tubes and the bruises and the ominous monitors. She was aware that Clint had promptly turned back around and moved out of the room, but she only had ears for Simmons.

“You’re the special transport?” the woman asked gently.

“I am,” Darcy said, hand hovering over Phil’s unmoving one.

“You can touch him.” She gently took his hand while Jemma spoke again.”He was shot three times before falling down a flight of stairs. The fall resulted in a nasty concussion and a broken leg and arm. One of the shots shattered a rib, and the fall fractured the others around it. He’s stable but critical.”

Darcy appreciated the direct tone and clinical details. “Oh Phil,” she said running a hand over his hair, “I know you said I had to get used to this, but I think I’ve had enough being whisked to your side when you’re injured for a lifetime.”

“If you don’t mind me asking…” Jemma said, trailing off.

“Who I am is classified,” Darcy said, “but you’re smart enough to figure out what that must mean.”

***

Clint had destroyed half the furniture in the small common area of the base, something May had let him do since he wasn’t disturbing Coulson. The other agents of the small team had stared at him while he did it. He had called Tony, a promise that had been extracted as they drove to the airport, and it wasn’t long before the Tony arrived with Natasha to take Coulson and Darcy back to the tower with them.

Much later there would be a lot of yelling, but that night there was concern for Phil’s condition and worry about what it would do to Darcy.

***

“You two are disgusting,” Tony announced when they came up to dinner holding hands. ”I think I liked you more when I was sure you were a robot.”

“Why is everything so fancy?” Darcy asked, taking in the fine china and expensive looking bottles of wine.

“Why don’t you tell us?” Natasha called from the chair she was curled up on.

“Oh my god,” Darcy breathed, “I can’t believe I forgot what day it was.”

“I didn’t,” Phil said, kissing her hair.”Happy anniversary.”


End file.
